Montague
Montague (Montecchi) is a Tremere Lord and member in good standing of the Camarilla. Biography Mortal Life Montague was born in the early 1400's. A nobleman by birth, he grew up in the lap of luxury. He married well and had a son he cared for deeply. Things took a turn for the worse when his son killed another nobleman in a duel and was exiled from the city. His wife died of grief and shortly thereafter his son died as well. Montague was left alone for the first time in his life. In his grief he turned to religion and then to the occult. He welcomed mystics from across all of Europe and the Orient with the goal of returning his family to life. In his research he learned of a man living in Austria that was rumored to have learned the secret of immortality. Montague wrote countless letters with no reply so he took matters into his own hands and traveled to Austria himself. The man rumored to have discovered the secret of immortality was Jakob von Blass, a reclusive nobleman that lived deep in the forest. Montague wrote him from the nearest city and after several months of pestering he was granted an audience. Montague rode to the Von Blass estate alone in the dead of night as instructed and was welcomed by a beautiful maid named Adelaide. She guided him inside the manor asking him why he had traveled so far. He told her his tale and she was moved by a fathers love. She introduced him to Jakob and he fell upon his knees and begged for the mystic's assistance in saving his family. Jakob listened patiently and then turned to Adelaide. She nodded and Jakob rose and left the room. Adelaide revealed that she was the truly the one that held the secret of immortality, that Jakob was used to keep the unworthy out of her hair. She offered Montague an opportunity to join her. While she made no promise of returning his family to life, she could help him contact them once again. Montague agreed without hesitation. The next day he wrote to his estate in Italy and had it sold and the funds transferred to a bank in Vienna. He had his servants dismissed and moved into Adelaide's service. He was made into a ghoul and served as Adelaide's assistant until he proved himself worthy of the Embrace. Life as a Kindred Montague took to life as a Kindred well. Having been raised a nobleman he adapted to the elegance of the Camarilla well. He devoted himself to research with Adelaide's guidance. He became a correspondent with a member of Clan Giovanni and over the years they developed a report good enough for him to learn some of the lower mysteries of necromancy, enough that he was able to communicate with his family once again. Montague holds a love of the arts, a true renaissance man, he often patrons several artists, authors, and poets to create works based off events of his mortal life. In his personal haven he maintains a marble bust of his mortal wife and a fine portrait of his son. When the Tremere began to move into the new world, Montague was assigned to the chantry in New Amsterdam where he befriended the ambitious Grigori Voronin. Montague quickly fell in with Grigori's group of friends so when Grigori was tasked with taming the old west, Montague was asked to join him. Montague set up the Los Angeles chantry and was heavily involved in the Tremere's presence in the west. As the Ventrue set up LA as a economic powerhouse. While the Ventrue focused on business, Montague and his love of the arts guided him to help establish LA as a center for the arts. Along with the Toreador, Montague helped to build the film industry. Many of Hollywood's elites that were interested in the occult have passed through Montague's doors once or twice. In the golden age of Hollywood Montague was renown for his lavish parties. After Grigori was officially placed in charge of the western coast of North America, Montague was made into the Lord of California. He withdrew from LA and moved into a more secluded haven where he aided in the training of the most promising pupils of the region. Relationships * [[Grigori Voronin|'Grigori Voronin']]: Montague is a faithful friend and servant to Grigori. Always willing to offer advice or simply play a game of chess. * [[Anastasia Loveless-Knight|'Anastasia Loveless-Knight']]: Montague selected Anastasia as a ghoul after a chance encounter with her father. Originally Tristan was of interest to the Tremere, however after conversing with then sixteen year old Anastasia she replaced her father as a candidate.